They're Going To Sell What Tomorrow Means...

 

When interacting with, and assessing the value of a piece of fiction, you have to ask yourself one very vital question:

“What came first? The fiction, or the toys?”

If the answer is the latter, you are likely in for a world of trouble. Kamen Rider and Super Sentai allow marketing and sales revenue to directly dictate the decisions they make, regarding the fiction that they create. So incredibly much of the time this results in minority characters being shortchanged, disenfranchised, and invalidated.

They’re perfectly fine with shredding logic and egalitarianism to pieces, leaving the writers to make sense of it all through symbolism and singular and momentary events that are but molecules compared to the skyscrapers of privilege and screentime dedicated to majority actors. Especially those portraying Reds and Titular Riders.

Admittedly, good lessons are imparted within Eastern tokusatsu, which is part of why I’ve been so schizophrenic in my feelings towards it. There’s also aspects of addiction at play, for me. Finally, someone who used to be in my life was willing to give it all a pass, and therefore, so too did I.

No more.

I’m leaving everything I’ve posted up (that’s still up), because I did endeavor to objectively review these items as physical objects. As much as I could feasibly manage to, at any rate… Plus, if you want to use the rationalizations I unearthed, you’re free to do that as well. Just be aware that the reality of the situation may bubble up and fracture your mental highway, too, someday.

Absolutely expect to continue seeing costume weaponry reviews, especially around Halloween. Don’t expect to see any for anything related to Eastern tokusatsu, outright, or because of applied associations.

“You’ve got to make a choice, if the music drowns you out.
And, raise your voice, every single time they try and shut your mouth.

Sing it for the boys, sing it for the girls.
Every time that you lose it, sing it for the world.
Sing it from the heart, sing it ’til you’re nuts.
Sing it out for the ones that’ll hate your guts.” (x)

Even if one of those people is a part of yourself.